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    	<a href = "index.html">Home</a> -&gt; Base Translations
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Base translations are rules that your wire files will initially go through prior to your specific translation.  These
are setup in SpeedManager under Wire -&gt; Wire Services -&gt; "A Wire Service" -&gt; "Process" tab -&gt; "Text Translation".
These rules are no different that any other translation except that they are applied to every file coming in for
a particular wire service.  An example of The Register's AP DataStream dropfolder configuration and associated
Text Translation (which executes for every Associated Press DataStream feed file transmitted):
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<img src = "screenshots/base1.png">&nbsp;
<img src = "screenshots/base2.png">
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<strong>Creating a Base Translation</strong><br>
Creating a base translation is pretty easy.  First, if you like, load a raw wire file to run your rules against.
(<img src = "open_apple.png" valign = "bottom">O or File -&gt; Open Raw Agate File)
It's not required to do this and in many cases, most people are just going to copy what they already have in
SpeedManager anyways, so this part is usually unnecessary.
<p>
All you need to do now is enter in rules.  Base translations are usually not very complicated and use a lot of
exhaustive replacement to get rid of multiple spaces or to convert underscores to emdashes and the like.  If you simply
want to use the default AP translation, that's cool too.  At this point, just make sure you aren't loading 
a base translation to create a base translation.  Seems obvious, but it's happened.
<p align = "center">
<img src = "screenshots/base3.png">
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Once you are satisfied with the ruleset, save it out to a file (File -&gt; Save As Base Translation).  This will bring
up a dialog box asking where to save it to.  The tester doesn't have an assosiated extension, so you don't necessarily
need to add one (like .txt or .art).  In fact, rules are saved in Apple's 
<a href = "http://developer.apple.com/documentation/Cocoa/Conceptual/PropertyLists/Concepts/AboutPropertyLists.html">Property List Format</a>
which usually prefer a .plist extension but are quite happy without one at all.  I recommend no extension.
<p align = "center">
<img src = "screenshots/base4.png">
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And that's it!  You've now got a completed base translation that can be used and re-used as many times as you 
need.  If you ever need to edit the base translation, simply load it (<img src = "open_apple.png" valign = "bottom">L or File -&gt; Load Saved Translation),
make your changes, then save it back out using the "Save As Base Translation" option.
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<strong>Using a Base Translation</strong><br>
To use your base translation, load it as a base instead of as a saved translation 
(<img src = "open_apple.png" valign = "bottom">B or File -&gt; Load Base Translation).  The tester will then read in your
base translation and permanently store it for as long as the application is running.  You can tell what base was loaded by
looking at the main rule window:
<p align = "center">
<img src = "screenshots/base5.png">
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Now everytime you click Run Rules or toggle a rule on or off, the base rules you built will be executed first before
any other rules.
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		<a href = "index.html">Home</a><br>
		<a href = "introduction.html">Meet the Tester Interface</a><br>
		Creating Base Translations<br>
		<a href = "what_you_need.html">Resources and Notes</a><br>
		<a href = "issues_limitations.html">Known Issues/Bugs/Limitations</a>
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